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Saturday, April 10, 2010

I'm counting down the days until Tuesday, when my newest TV favorite, Glee,returns!

I'm sure you've heard all the hype about the show, but here's a quick summary: It follows a millenial Breakfast Club of sorts as they navigate their tumultous suburban high school experience by singing in their glee club, New Directions. The show's title captures not only its central premise, but how you feel when you watch it. It's a classic underdog, coming-of-age journey set to your best friend's iPod.

The cast performs multiple numbers in every episode depicting the theme of that week whether it be overcoming obstacles, unrequited love, finding yourself, and every other adolescent experience. Talented cannot begin to describe the glee club, as they provide a fresh interpretation of every Top 40, classic rock, and Broadway song you could think of. Their teacher, Will Schuester, acts as the understanding mentor you wish you had in high school who can carry a tune of his own.

Bringing the show full circle is the way the cast seems genuine and earnest, as in recent interviews by Oprah, Rolling Stone, and the like.

One of their many excellent performances, here is New Directions performing in their final competition thus far:

This performance (even better when seen in the episode) captures the heart of the show: Life may not be perfect, but when you're doing what you love, in the company that you care about most, it can be pretty great.

New episodes of Glee begin this Tuesday, April 13th, at 9:28 PM Eastern on FOX.

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Have you ever stared at your computer or phone waiting for something to happen?

Sometimes I worry that social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook are giving me a false sense of achievement and belonging. When I'm lonely, bored, or stressed, the compulsion to visit these sites and write about my life at its most mundane is imminent. Sometimes this writing develops into a conversation with friends, or a new career contact, but most often, it disappears into cyberspace, along with the hours I spent on the site.

Still, when it does occur, there is nothing like the joy of receiving a wall post or tweet from a friend. While time spent with friends in person is much more satisfying, there is something special about having messages from friends organized into a continuous database that can be revisited anytime. When I read these notes, it reminds me of the friendships I have made throughout my life. And I often reread my own status updates to reminisce upon good times. I see nothing wrong with doing so, as long I don't let it interfere with opportunities to live life to the fullest.

On that note, enough musing for today. Sarah is returning to work and real-life interaction.